TOKYO -
The former dolphin trainer and main character in the Oscar-winning documentary
about the dolphin hunt in Japan said Tuesday he has invited Daryl Hannah and
other Hollywood stars to the village of Taiji to prevent the killings from
starting again.

Ric O’Barry, whose documentary “The Cove” has been canceled in Japan
following threats against movie theaters, said Hannah had confirmed her trip to
a music festival in Taiji he is organizing in September.

Other celebrities who have already voiced their support for his cause include
Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Jason Mraz, Chris Tashima and Robin Williams.
They all appear in a public service announcement in support of “The Cove.”

The former dolphin trainer for the “Flipper” TV show believes his trip to
Taiji last year with journalists, including The Associated Press, which brought
international attention to the hunt, helped pressure fishermen to refrain from
culling dolphins. This year he said he wants to bring 1,000 people to make sure
the hunt doesn’t start up again.

“We all go there and have a good time, and support the economy,” he told AP
Tuesday at a Tokyo hotel. “It’s not confrontational. We bring frisbees.”

In recent weeks, theaters in Japan have canceled screenings of “The Cove,”
which had been planned for release later this month, after getting a flood of
angry phone calls and threats by nationalists, who oppose the film as a
denigration of Japanese culture.

Some of the protesters have been shouting slogans through loudspeakers at the
Japanese distributor’s office. The threats have led to the cancellation of some
of O’Barry’s speaking engagements during his current trip.

Only a handful of people in Taiji, a quiet town of 3,500, hunt dolphins,
which are sold to aquariums or eaten. Although O’Barry has visited Taiji many
times, the residents and fishermen have told AP that they resent the movie as
outside interference in their lifestyle.

O’Barry said scientific data show that dolphin meat has high levels of
mercury, which could be toxic if consumed in large amounts, and urged people to
stop eating it for health reasons.

He said he would offer monetary help to anyone in Taiji and the surrounding
region with symptoms of mercury-poisoning and promised to make sure they get
tested.

A Japanese government lab test of Taiji residents, released last month, found
dangerously high levels of mercury, but no one was diagnosed as ill although
some were advised to cut back on eating dolphins.

Mercury poisoning, which is extremely risky for fetuses, can cause tremors,
numbness, mood swings and impaired movement in adults, and can be fatal.

“The Cove” and O’Barry last week received an enthusiastic reception from more
than 250 students at Wakayama University, located near Taiji village.

Kevin Collins, who invited O’Barry as part of his English-presentation class,
said the exchange was lively.

“I think I understand his message, and I think I know how his message is
being perceived by Japanese,” Collins said. “The Japanese think he is attacking
their tradition.”

O’Barry says all he wants is a dialogue, including helping Taiji fishermen
find alternative ways of making a living. He apologized if the secret filming
tactics of “The Cove” have offended some people.

“But I make no apologies for my cause,” he said. “Many of my friends love the
country of Japan, and they all ask the same question: Why do you need to
slaughter dolphins?”